Love Smurfs Eternal
by SmurfyFriend
Summary: Hefty and Smurfette have always had a connection... but what happens when that connection is taken a step further...? Commission by Smurf-Fan1993 on DeviantART.
1. Absinthe and Autumn Decorating

_Love is patient, love is kind, Love is gentle, Love can hurt, but Love won't mind…_

_Love is a sucker_.

This is a man's world. Ask anyone the question, and you'll get the same answer. My village is no different. It's tough being one girl among a hundred other guys. But it's not altogether a bad thing. Except when it comes to matters of the heart.

One morning of no particular importance, I started to stir from sleep. The sun streamed in from the open windows, the curtains fluttering from the cool summer breeze. But I still had a sinking feeling… That feeling you get when you wake up, and you _KNOW_ you're late. I looked over to the clock. "Oh, smurf is me!" I said to myself, practically jumping out of bed "I'm late to go help Vanity with the Harvest festival decorations!"

I managed to choose a dress out of a closetful of others, then make up my face so I don't look _TOO_ atrocious. I opted out of breakfast, and instead rushed to the village square where my somewhat effeminate best friend was already starting to decorate the area with autumn-y colors. "Sorry I'm late, Vanity!" I said, starting on hanging some lanterns and streamers. "I didn't even hear my alarm smurf!"

The conceited, if not narcissistic smurf glanced at me from his wooden mirror and smiled a little. "Oh, hel-_LO_, Smurfette," he smiled a little, then rolled his eyes. "It's alright, we're all still waiting on Dreamy to bring us more leaves for streamers anyways."

I didn't feel so bad then. Dreamy likely would take another half an hour, even after I got here. He _ALWAYS_ had his head in the clouds, it's a wonder he never got hurt here in the village or out in the forest. I took a few streamers that were sitting on the picnic table, and started to hang them up in between the house right next to the one Vanity was at. "Oh, Smurfette- honey, _tell_ me you're still coming to my party tonight!" he inquired, shooting me a glance not from his mirror. "Everysmurf whose _ANY_smurf will be there!"

Of course I was going. Besides the fact that Vanity is one of my very best friends in the village, he throws _SUCH_ great parties! He's really a great host, too. Plus, he always convinces Greedy to make some of his famous red velvet cupcakes with smurfberry icing- a true to-die-for treat! "Of _course_ I'll be there, you silly smurf!" I laughed, "I wouldn't smurf it for the world!"

Vanity smiled smugly, and then laughed a knowing little giggle. "And guess who else will be there?" he said, his voice reduced to a whisper.

"Who?" I asked, as if I didn't already know the answer.

"Hefty, silly!" Vanity nudged me, suggestively wiggling his eyebrows.

I laughed and rolled my eyes a little. "I don't know what you're making such a fuss about, Vanity." I replied, "Hefty and I are just friends. GOOD friends, at that!"

It's true, really. Hefty's another really good friend of mine in the village. Heck, he's almost everyone's really good friend. As well as Dreamy's incredibly close twin brother. Not even in spirit. Supposedly, they actually came to the village on the exact same night. And because of the fact the stork gave Papa Hefty first, he's considered the older twin. That's really not that important, though, almost nobody can even tell they're twins. Vanity arched an eyebrow at me, unconvinced. "Mmm hmm…." He hummed, a slight smirk on his face, then made airquotes with his fingers. "_'Good friends_.'"

"Vanity, _REALLY_," I sighed a little, "Hefty and I are really just friends."

Although…. I had to admit, maybe I _did_ kinda like him…. Those muscles… those tattoos… And he's always so nice to everyone… Sometimes it seemed like we had chemistry… but I wasn't really sure; seeing as I've never truly been in love before. But of course, if I ever told Vanity any of this, he wouldn't let me smurf the end of it. "Sure, _sure_…" Vanity hummed contentedly, then laughed a little. "But _really_, Smurfette… You could've just humored me a little!"

I narrowed my eyes slightly at him and smirked. "I would've, but I've found that when I give you an inch of humoring, you take a mile."

He made an innocent "Who, moi?" face and gestured to himself jokingly. The peace was shaken by the crash and tumbles and the appearing of a familiar face. "Oops! Uh, Sorry, Smurfette!" Clumsy stumbled into me, knocking me back a few steps.

"It's alright, Clumsy. No smurf, no foul." I smiled a little, then fixed his hat so it wasn't in his eyes so much. "Say, Clumsy? Have you smurfed Dreamy anywhere? He was supposed to bring us back leaves so we could make more streamers."

The sweet but accident prone smurf shook his head, shaking his hat right back into his eyes. "Nope. Bu' th' las' time I saw'm was down by th' Smurfberry patch."

Vanity's ears practically pricked up at the mention of the idealistic smurf, and his small tail jiggled and twitched in agitation. "Ooh! I ought to smurf him a piece of my mind!" he pouted, "If he thinks I _WANT_ to spend all day smurfing decorations for some harvest festival that's not until tomorrow when I still have to get ready for my party tonight, he's got another thing smurfing!"

Now a smurf on a mission, Vanity practically marched from the village square, leaving me and Clumsy behind. I sighed a little, said a hasty goodbye to Clumsy, then hurried after Vanity to make sure he didn't go into one of his little temper tantrums on Dreamy. "Smurf down, Vanity," I took his arm, trying to calm him down. "I'm sure Dreamy has a good explanation for taking so long."

"_Hmph_!" Vanity turned up his nose slightly, indignantly, "I'll believe it when I smurf it!"

Vanity sighed a moment, then preened himself in his mirror. "Oh, Smurfette, I don't know how much more of decorating with Dreamy I can _SMURF_," he stretched out his undereye slightly, examining the skin. "My complexion is just smurfing out the _window!_ Just _look_ at these worry lines I'll get." He moaned a little, as if in pain.

"Don't worry, Vanity." I told him, patting him on the back. "I'm sure you'll look just as smurfy when you're Grandpa Smurf's age as you do now."

Vanity smiled smugly and watched himself in his prized mirror. "Oh, yes, Smurfette, I _do_ believe you're right." He hummed.

It wasn't a very long walk to the edge of the village, where Farmer smurf was hard at work in the fields. Vanity seemed to slow down slightly while we were passing through, watching the farmhand hard at work. Farmer looked up at us, and waved for a moment before returning to work. Vanity glanced at me, then glanced at Farmer again. "Um… You go ahead and get Dreamy, I have to go talk to Farmer about the drinks for my party tonight."

I rolled my eyes a little. Vanity's parties almost _always_ involved alcohol. While it was fun to drunk-smurf-watch, the day after is just _AWFUL_. "Alright," I said, watching as he skittered off towards the farmhand, feet seeming to barely touch the fertilized ground. "Just hurry up!"

I walked past the fields, and out to the smurfberry crops. Just as expected, there was Dreamy, sitting on Smurfberry's Leap, a large hill that drops off into a deep gorge near the edge of the wild smurfberry patch, eyes up at the clouds, a contented smile on his face and a bagful of leaves next to him. Personally, I felt guilty disturbing the fantasist. He always looked so happy in this trance-like state as opposed to the air of gloom he carried with him when he was in the village. Although, most of the others would disagree. Vanity, for one, as much as he tried to respect the dreams of the idealist smurf, would by now have torn right into him and started going off on a tangent about worry lines, or stress acne, or his party tonight, or something of similar 'importance'. I walked over to where Dreamy sat, and gently poked his shoulder. "_Dreamy_-"

The smurf jumped a little and uttered a little '_eep_' noise before he looked up at me. "Oh! You startled me, Smurfette." He said, the light, imaginative sparks in his eyes dulling by the moment.

"Oh, I'm sorry Dreamy." I answered, helping him up. "I didn't mean to… We were just looking for you so we could get more streamers and finish up decorating for the autumn festival."

The dreamer's eyes, by now, had dulled down to their normal state. "Oh." He said, "I'm sorry, I lost track of time." He paused for a moment. "We?"

"Vanity was with me, but he went to go talk to Farmer about his party tonight." I explained. "Are you going tonight?"

Dreamy shrugged, picking his bag up from the ground. "I dunno… Probably." He replied, "Hefty'll probably drag me with him… Haha…"

I smiled a little. "He really loves you, you know." I said.

"I know," Dreamy replied, looking down at me with a similar smile. "He has an odd way of smurfing it, but I know he does."

I was about to make a reply when a certain mirror-toting smurf half stormed his way through the smurfberry patch. "There you are!" he huffed impatiently, "It's about time you brought some leaves back, _Dreamer_-"Dreamy seemed to wince at the word-"Hurry up and help me, I have to go get the refreshments for the party!"

"Nobody even really drinks at your parties, Vanity," Dreamy pointed out, a little flatly, "Except you, Farmer, Painter, and Hefty. Why's it such a big deal now?"

"Oh, Dreamy, don't be so lukewarm." Vanity chided him playfully. "Tonight won't have just _ANY_ kind of wine, or liquor." There was an almost mischievous look in his calculating eyes. "Tonight we're having _absinthe_."

"Absinthe?" Dreamy perked up a little, tilting his head like a curious puppy.

"It's a really high- proof drink, made from Grand Wormwood." Vanity explained, pointing to a small green plant that grew near Farmer's winery. "Painter and Poet suggested it, Poet found a recipe and ingredients list from a human library, and Farmer managed to brew it up." He smiled a little, remembering the process in his mind, "I've already had a taste, and it is truly something. Made me want to go paint or write, or do something artistic! Haha."

Dreamy and I shared a snicker, and looked at eachother. It was just one night… Trying something new… What harm could it do to smurf a little fun? "Okay, okay," I caved, "I'll try your abstract, or whatever it's called."

"Yeah, sure, me too." Dreamy agreed, a smile on his face.

"It's called Ab_SINTHE_," he said, with a raise of his eyebrow, "but goody! I'll see you both tonight then!"

"Who'll see who tonight?" I heard a gruff voice from behind me, and jumped a little.

Vanity looked up to the source of the voice. "Oh, hel-_LO_, Hefty," he said, that smug Cheshire cat grin on his face and his eyebrow arched at me. "I was just telling Smurfette and Dreamy about the new drink tonight."

"Smurfy, Vanity!" He said, zest in his voice as he gave Vanity a slightly too hard love tap on the back, "Can't wait to try that Absolutely stuff you were tellin' me about."

"It's called _ABSINTHE_." He said plainly, giving me one of those '_I'm surrounded by idiots' _looks_. _"And good, because I'm going over to pick some up after we finish smurfing the village square."

"Smurfy!" Hefty said, ruffling Dreamy's hat, then giving the smurf a hug around the shoulders. "Heya Dreamy. I have to get the chains out and drag you out tonight?"

"No, because I'm going on my _own_ accord tonight." Dreamy joked, bumping into Hefty intentionally as we walked back to the village square. "You won't have to drag me out to socialize today!"

" '_drag you out,'_ huh? I think you're absosmurfly right!" Hefty said, the beginnings of a joke in his throat, "No, I'll _carry_ you out instead!"

"No! no! no! no! no way!" Dreamy protested, starting to run from Hefty, but the smile on his face betraying the playful nature of the words. "Get away, Hefty!"

"Gotcha!" Hefty said, catching the bordering scrawny smurf in one arm, then tossing him over his shoulders in a fireman's carry. "Now, I'll carry you out!"

"Put me down!" Dreamy protested. "Put me down, Hefty!"

"Never!" Hefty replied.

I laughed. "Come on, Hefty, put him down." I said, "we need him to help us with decorating!"

"Alright, alright," Hefty groaned a little jokingly, and put Dreamy back down on the ground.

Dreamy teasingly muttered something about Hefty being a psychosmurf and ran off to the village square before he could get punished for his comment. Hefty shook his fist in the air lightheartedly, promising to get back at him for the remark. He turned to me, and gave me a gentle squeeze around the shoulders. "H'lo, Smurfette." He said with a small smile.

I just love his smile… I don't know what it was, but something about it… it just seemed to make the rest of the world smurfier. "Hi, Hefty," I replied, trying not to sound too stupid and hoping that my cheeks weren't as red as they felt. "So… um… You excited for the party tonight?"

"Yeah… Never heard of Absinthe or whatever before." He replied, "Sounds interesting. Sounds like some kind of a poison or a villain in a book or something."

I laughed a little. "It does, doesn't it?" I asked.

"Yeah." Hefty laughed a little too.

We were quiet again. I snuck a look at the muscular athlete at my side. His abdominal muscles seemed to tense when he walked, well defined and slightly shiny with sweat. His large arm muscles seemed to ripple with every step he took. His face…. his face was gentle, his mouth quick to smile. His cheeks looked…. Flush? And his eyes… were fixed right on mine. Feeling my cheeks flush, I quickly looked away. It wasn't too long before we finally reached the village square. "Well… I- um… I should let you decorate…" Hefty said, awkwardly scratching the back of his head and fidgeting a little in his place.

He's an athlete, he was probably itching to get more active than just walking. "Y-yeah, I guess." I replied, feeling kind of stupid with nothing to say. "See ya round?"

"Yeah…" Hefty smiled a little, starting to walk away.

I watched him walk away, off to go do chores or something. "_BOOO!_" A familiar voice called from behind me, catching me off guard. "What a horrible ending!"

I turned around and saw Vanity, having been watching our entire conversation as if it were one of Actor's weekly dramatic play series or something. "Oh, Vanity… You are _SUCH_ a drama-smurf."

"Am _not_…" Vanity muttered, preening himself in his mirror, "I've just got smurfier thoughts to go with this pretty face, that's all."

"Your 'smurfier thoughts' sound more like _SMURFIER_ thoughts." I raised an eyebrow warningly.

"Guilty as smurfed!" he hummed with a certain smugness about him.

Right as I was about to make a reply, I heard approaching footsteps. I looked around, only to see Hefty walking towards us, looking determined, but at the same time…. Nervous? "H'lo, Smurfette." He said, his voice sounding dry.

"Hi, Hefty." I smiled a little. "Long time, no smurf."

He smiled a little bit. "I know, huh?" he paused for a moment, as if trying to organize his thoughts. "So, um… Smurfette… Y-Y'know about tonight's party?"

"Yes?" for some reason, I felt my heart beating faster.

"Well, um…. I was…. well… I was wondering if….if…" the words seemed stuck on his tounge.

"If…?" I nudged him further. Is he really asking what I think he's asking?

"If… you'd allow me to be your escort." He said, calmly.

It felt as though my heart had skipped a beat. "O—Okay." I answered, "I'd like that, Hefty."

He had a slight smile of what looked like relief. "Alright," he said, "I'll pick you up at 6:30 then?"

I nodded, smiling. "Okay… that sounds good." I looked up at him, into his deep green eyes. "Thank you… I'll see you then."

He smiled in reply, then walked back in the direction he left in. I turned around to go back to work, only to see a very self-satisfied looking Vanity grinning at me. "I _DO_ think I prefer this ending."

I looked back in the direction that Hefty had left in. "Me too, Vanity." I said, "Me too."


	2. This Feels Right

Vanity, Dreamy and I soon finished decorating the village square, and Vanity left to go get his Absolution, or Absolve, or whatever. Dreamy left to go hide from the rest of us and daydream. I went right back to my house. I checked the clock as soon as I walked through the door. 5:30. I had an hour before Hefty came over to pick me up. I looked down at my dress. It had gotten a little dirty with all the decorating and chores I had to do that day. I walked to the powder room, then pulled the powder-blue spotted curtain on the white porcelain bath tub. Handy installed this quite a while ago, it makes the water come from a spout higher up, so it's easier to wash away the impurities of the day than it would be to bathe. He called it a "shower", I think. I closed the powder blue curtains on the window not far from the tub, then stripped out of my dirty clothes. I turned a little knob on the pipes, starting the hot water. I felt the water with my hands, but quickly recoiled. _MUCH_ too hot! I turned a second knob on the other side of the pipe, and that started the cold water. Once I'd balanced the temperature, I hung a dry towel over the shower railing and stepped inside the large bath tub. I let the warm water run down my back and through my gold hair. I splashed some of the water on my face, washing away the sweat and grime from the day's chores. I used my favorite herbal soap that Vanity found me for my smurfday to clean myself, then used a touch of fruity-smelling shampoo to wash and condition my hair. I quickly used a razor to shave my legs and underarms, then shut the water off just as it started to get cold. I took the towel down from the rack, and used it to dry off, and wrap up my hair. I took a second towel and wrapped myself in it, then cautiously stepped out onto the pastel pink rug in front of the bathtub.

Still wrapped in the towel, I walked down the hall to my bedroom, and went through my closet for something to wear. Every dress and outfit was sorted through. too small(as if there was anything there to begin with). Too plain. To bold. Too colorful. Too small. Too big. Made my hips look too big. I sighed a little. _I've gone through every dress in my closet! _I moaned to myself_, I'll never find a good enough dress for the party!_

Then, I remembered. I had ordered a dress from Tailor a while back, and he'd just finished it and delivered it yesterday. I walked to where I'd left it- on the desk, in a white bag- and opened up the packaging. It was a sleeveless scoop neckline, slit slightly in the middle of the bust-but not too much- and an open back. The midsection had a pattern of black beads curved inwards to draw attention to my thin waist and give me just the right amount of hips. The skirt part of the dress was about an inch longer than where the tip of my fingers reached on my thighs. Accompanied by black heels, small gold hoop earrings, smoky eyeshadow, red lipstick and gold bangles on my left wrist, it truly made me look dressed to kill. I checked the clock. 6:30. _Hefty will be here any_- There was a loud knock on the door.

I walked down the stairs, and opened the door. "Hefty!" I said, almost surprised, "You're right on time."

He looked absosmurfly dashing. His eyes that gentle shade of green, deep set, and at the same time gentle and sweet. His pants looked a little wrinkled, but at the same time neat, well-kept. Even from where I stood, I could smell his almost spicy-smelling cologne, so much so I could practically taste it. Cinnamon, or nutmeg, or some sort of strong spice. He offered me a small bunch of flowers like daffodils and lilies, with little sprigs of jasmine and sage. "Well, of course," he said, a small smile. "When one is escorting a lady, one must be on time." He held out the flowers to me. "These are for you, too."

I took the small bouquet, and smiled a thank you. "Why, they're so smurfy, Hefty!" I said, inhaling a breath of the flowery fragrances "Thank you. I'll go put these in water right now."

I walked quickly to the kitchen, and found a good vase to put the flowers in, then quickly returned to the door. "Thank you for escorting me, kind sir," I said in a 'proper' voice.

"But of course, milady," he replied, that same joking proper voice and a small bow. "A lady ought not be walking the streets alone at night. Not without a strong smurf to protect her, that is." He offered me his arm, the way a formal escort would. "Shall we join the party now, milady?"

"I suppose we should," I replied, linking my arm with his. "After all, we have absinthe to smurf, and a tantrum-smurfing smurf to face if we don't hurry."

Hefty laughed his deep laugh, and started to lead me the short distance to Vanity's well-decorated house. The party was not yet in full swing, but had plenty of lights, and loud party patrons. Hefty knocked on the door. The door soon swung open, and there was Vanity, dressed in pair of blue denim jeans, flared out a bit at the feet, and a white tee shirt, cut at a V in the neck. "Oh, my smurf, Smurfette! That dress!" he gestured to me and my dress, "You look smurfed to KILL!"

"Don't give her any ideas, the night's not over yet!" Hefty joked a little.

Vanity laughed. "She would, too." He winked at me jokingly. "Come in, we were just about to open up the absinthe!"

I was a little bit… Nervous… Going inside… As soon as Vanity mentioned absinthe, I had this odd sense of foreboding… Like… _something was going to happen_… But, one smile from Hefty, and that thought was quickly pushed aside. Vanity uncorked a bottle, filled with green liquid_. Is that it? Is that the absinthe?_ Vanity poured us all a small glass's worth that couldn'tve been bigger than my hand. He passed two of them to me and Hefty, then clinked our glasses. "To first tries." Vanity said, a knowing smile.

He and Hefty raised the glasses to their lips and quickly downed the contents. I swirled the little glass around a little and nervously drank the green liquid.

As soon as the alcohol sank in… I wanted _more_. Second, third, fourth shots slid down my throat. And Hefty's as well. Even after a few drinks, he carried himself so well… so _handsome_… what was it about this lighting that made him look so _handsome_? Whatever it was, it made me want to be closer to him… and the strange thing was… he seemed to want to be closer to me, too… _So I let him be_…

The music slowed down… He took me by the hand, and led me out to the dance floor… all the others around us… they all seemed to melt away… all I could see was me and him… those eyes… he could stare right into my soul… it made my heart pound in my chest… _This moment… this very moment… it feels so right_… "You look absosmurfly _stunning _tonight, by the way." He whispered in my ear.

"Thank you…" I slurred a little, resting my forehead against his shoulder. "You look pretty smurfy yourself."

"Thanks." His voice was a little hard to understand, between how much absinthe had passed our lips.

It was quiet between us for a moment or two. The music seemed to fade away. It was just me and him in the room, in this moment… I wouldn'tve traded it for the world… Then he spoke the words that changed my life.

"_I love you, Smurfette…"_

I was stunned by the words. "W… _what_…?"

Hefty used one hand to tilt my face up to his. "_I love you, Smurfette_… I've _always_ loved you… Ever since I found you that day in the forest…" He whispered, alcohol heavy on his breath.

I wasn't sure what to say, at first. Then the alcohol in my system spoke for me. "Hefty…. _I've always loved you too_…" I couldn't believe these words were really coming from _ME_. "I wasn't sure what you'd say… That's why I never said anything…"

He smiled an almost loopy smile, and sloppily kissed me on the lips, making the entire world seem to fall away, melt into nothing again. Once he broke the kiss, I wiped excess saliva on my hand, and rested my head against his heart, listening to it beat at a fast pace. "_I wish this night never ever had to end_." I whispered to him, pressing myself closer to him.

"_Who said it had to_?" Hefty whispered back, huskily.

From that point on, my memories of the rest of the night were sketchy at best… I remember a lot of heat. A lot of movement. A lot of yelling. And a lot of passion, too. But of course, the morning right after, my head hurt the second my eyes flickered open. I jammed them back shut. Mumbling about morning sun, I snuggled back under the covers. _It's so cold…. But this pillow next to me is awfully warm and smurfy…these red blankets must be-!_ I stopped my thoughts. _Wait a second… I don't have red blankets on my bed… I don't even OWN red blankets!_

I looked down at myself, only to panic a bit. I was completely unclothed. Nude. In the buff. Naked. _Stark _naked even. Drawing a quick but quiet breath, I poked my head out from under the covers and looked around. Posters of circus acts and pin-up fairies line the neutral beige-painted wall. _This isn't my house!_ I panicked internally, _Why am I naked?! Where am I?!_

I heard this noise from behind me... something mixing a yawn, a mumble and a groan. Slowly, I turned to face whatever being brought me here. The blue figure had his back turned to me, I couldn't tell who it was. The figure uttered another yawn-mumble-groan, and rolled over. That's when I recognized him. Hefty. Asleep right next to me. As naked as naked comes. I recoiled in shock, nearly landing right off the bed. I'm guessing I might've nudged him or something, because his eyes started to flicker. I quickly used a portion of the sheets to cover myself up while I scanned the room, looking for my clothes. Hefty seemed to have a similar reaction to mine. He stared at me for half a second, then stared at himself. Surprised more than anything, he looked up at me. "Oh smurf…. Did we…? Y'know_…. Smurf_…? Last night…?" he murmured.

"I don't remember." I replied, honestly. "But I'm pretty sure we _did_..."

"Oh smurf…" Hefty replied, again more shocked than anything else. "I… I just ruined our whole friendship, didn't I?"

I shook my head. "I don't think so," I replied, "if I remember right, we smurfed a few good words beforehand." I smiled at him a little.

He thought for a moment, then blushed even deeper than he was before. "Ohh… you mean where I said '_I love you'_…. Then when you said it back…" he smiled a little, that almost seductive half-smile he has…"_Made me the happiest smurf on this blue earth_."

I felt my cheeks flush redder, and I smiled back at him. He put a hand on my shoulder, rubbing gently with his thumb and forefinger. I took his hand, and moved it down so it was next to him. "Hefty… I have to go get dressed." I told him, keeping my smile.

I took the sheet with me so I'd have some cover in case his roommate and best friend, Handy, was home, and started looking for my clothes. Hefty wrapped his lower half in a towel he got out of a laundry basket, and followed me. "Y'know… We can always be a little _late_ to breakfast, if you know what I mean." He said, arching his eyebrow.

I shook my head and laughed a little bit. "Hefty… If we're late to breakfast the others will suspect something… And I sort of want to keep this all under smurfs for right now. Just in case I'd hurt somesmurf's feelings right now." I replied. "It's not that I don't want to. _BELIEVE _me, it's not that. I'm just thinking we should play it safe."

He nodded in understanding, then went back into his room to go get clothes so he could get dressed. I had already found my dress on the floor of Hefty's room. I left my jewelry on his nightstand. One of my shoes was tossed under a dresser, and the other was in the doorway. My underwear was tangled up in the blankets and sheets. What an odd night that was, I reflected, then yawned loudly. I'm so tired!

Once I was dressed again, I combed through my hair with my fingers in a mirror so it didn't look like day-after hair. Hefty came out of the bathroom he had been changing in, and smiled at me. "So then… are you _HAPPY_ last night happened?" he asked, putting a hand on the nape of my neck. "Are we a thing?"

I paused for a moment. Then looked up at him and nuzzled him a little. "Hefty… _We're EVERYTHING_." I replied.

He smiled, then kissed me on the lips again, much cleaner and less sloppy than before. Even after the kiss was broken, I rested my head against his strong, firm chest, listening to his heart beat. _This feels right…_

The sound of footsteps shook me from the spell Hefty seemed to hold over me. "Hey, Hefty, have you seen my-!" I looked up, only to see Handy.

He was dressed in his normal denim overalls, a grease stain on the chest, and smaller oil smudges on his cheeks and arms. He stood with his hand on his hip, a large wrench in the other as he leant against the door opening. "Oh, this is _too _rich." He smirked.

"Handy!" Hefty tensed up, shaking a fist at him. "If you tell anyone, I swear, I'll-!"

"Hey, hey, calm down, Hef." Handy said, rolling his eyes. "I won't tell anyone. Really." He started out the door. "At least not without snapping pictures first!"

Handy ran out to go find his picture-smurfer. Hefty was about to go after him when out of seemingly nowhere, there was a loud sound of ringing. "You should go change." Hefty whispered, stroking my hair a little. "Sneak out the back; nosmurf ever goes that way."

"Okay." I replied, not moving my head from his chest. "I'll see you later, okay?"

"Okay." He spoke back, kissing me on the forehead. "Now go, I'll meet up with you later."

I slipped out the back exit of the house, and made a mad dash for my house. I changed out of my red dress and washed off some of my make-up, I took out my earrings, then ran a comb through my hair, and dashed back out the door. I ran back to the mess hall, finding an open seat next to Vanity, who was simply admiring himself as he ate. "Hi, Vanity," I said. "Great party last night."

Vanity looked up from his mirror, and yawned. "Hello, Smurfette," He said, then stretched his arms. "_OOOOOH_ smurf, I am _TIRED_."

I sat down at the seat and stretched a little, listening to the little pops and cracks that come with the morning. "You're telling me." I agreed. "I need coffee."

I never drink coffee. It smurfs up my stomach, and the way Greedy brews it, it's much too bitter. "_You_? Need coffee?" Vanity looked up at me.

"After the morning I've had." I admitted.

"What was so unsmurfy about it anyways?" Vanity went back to admiring and preening himself. "You came in late… oversleep?"

I shook my head. "Not exactly."

"Oh?" Vanity looked up at me and arched an eyebrow, "care to elaborate then?"

I felt my cheeks flush deeply. "Well… um…. Uh…" I stumbled with my words and started playing with my fingers a little. "I… I woke up this morning…."

"Yesss….?" Vanity nodded, "_And_…?"

"And… I_… I was in Hefty's bed_…"

Vanity's eyes widened a little bit. Well… a _LOT_ really. "_OH_…." He said, plainly. "Well—ehm… Is this a good thing?"

"I… I…" I said, hesitantly, then nodded my head. "Yes. I think it was a very good thing."

"Oh, well then congratulations, Dearie." He smiled, patting me on the back. "It's about time, really. I thought you two would _NEVER_ get together!"

I felt my cheeks blush even hotter. "Thanks… but would you mind keeping it between us…?" I said, "I kind of don't want it to get out right now. You know, with the whole… _'every-smurf-in-love-with-me'_ thing, I don't really want to hurt anysmurf's feelings…"

He nodded a little and patted me on the back a little. "Of course. Smurf's the word." He said, "Just remember, it'll come out eventually. You can't sneak around forever."

"I'll figure it out eventually, Vanity." I said, finally starting to cut into my pancake. "Who knows, maybe it'll just—come to me."

Little did I know _JUST _how it would come to me. Or just _HOW SOON_...


	3. Take it Slow

**I AM SO SORRY! *hides face in bag* I've been up to my EARS in school, writers block, work, general schtuff... I'm sorry this has been so neglected! DX **

**I promise I'll at least TRY to keep better updates with this story ^^; October is a weird month for me, I'm working the hours I usually WRITE (5-1am XD) four days a week, AND have Senior project to worry about, and all that jazz... *faints***

**Well, enjoy this *cough* crappy*cough, cough* chapter, and don't shoot me yet ^^;**

* * *

The day had gone by fairly quickly. A bit of gossip here and there with Vanity, helping with more decorations, baking goodies with Greedy while trying to keep his compulsive eating habit in check, trying to find Dreamy when he decided to hide from us and waste time with his dreams. And lunch, of course, but nothing was particularly eventful about lunch.

Just after lunch, I found myself goose-stepping through the village on a path to Hefty's house. In hindsight, that was a bit dumb to do. Everyone already knew that I was friends with Hefty, it wouldn't exactly be uncommon for me to visit, right? Walking there like I had something to hide would have just tipped somesmurf off. Despite whatever suspicions I cast, I walked to the home of my friend-turned-smurffriend, and knocked on the door. It wasn't Hefty who came to the door, but at least he was a friend too. "Hello, Smurfette." Handy said cordially, inviting me in. "Here to see Hefty?"

I nodded, and walked through the doorway. "Hi Handy… Yes, Hefty said we'd meet up here after chores."

"Well, I think he's still working at the dam. But you're welcome to wait here for him." Handy said, closing the front door, and walking towards a small kitchenette area. "Iced tea?"

I took a seat on an odd orange colored and almost paisley patterned couch. "Oh yes, thank you." I smiled in his direction.

He opened up a small icebox of his own design. He prodded around a little, moving bottles and clear boxes of leftovers. He sighed a little in light aggravation. "Smurfit, Hefty." he grumbled, then picked a long-necked bottle out. "Is lemonade okay?"

"No, no. I don't mind." I replied.

He got two glasses down from a cabinet, and poured lemonade from the long-necked bottle into both. "Sorry." He apologized, handing me one. "Hefty has this habit of not making more iced tea or stuff when we're out. I swear, living with him is smurfright impossible on some days."

I found myself chuckle a little as he sat down next to me. "Is he really that unsmurfy?" I inquired, "You two are such good friends!"

Handy took a sip from his glass. "You can love somesmurf to death but still find it hard to live with them sometimes." He answered with a shrug. "Hefty's my best friend. But there's still days I want to smack him right in the kisser." He chuckled a little. "But the same thing goes for me. I drive him smurfy sometimes too."

He patted me on the back. "Don't smurf it, Smurfette. If it's meant to be, it'll all smurf out."

As if mentally cued, the door opened and Hefty walked through the door. He turned towards us in the sitting room, just near the front door and raised an eyebrow at us. "Hey, Handy, you're not trying to make a move on Smurfette, are ya?" he joked.

"Yes, that is EXACTLY what I'm doing." Handy rolled his eyes a little, and gave me a platonic little side hug around the shoulders. "Ya better smurf onto her, she's a real catch."

"I will, Handy. TRUST me." Hefty replied, walking to where I sat and giving me a big bear hug. "Hello, Smurfette."

"Hi Hefty." I smiled at him, feeling my cheeks flush a little bit.

Handy got up from the couch and, smirk on his face, started towards his workshop. Hefty scooted over so that he was laying back against the arm of the couch, and opened his arms. "There's room for ya." He said with a small smile.

I smiled back at him, and laid so that I had my head on his chest and he had a hand in my hair, patting my back a little. It felt really… well, really _nice_… being with him, like this… I was tired enough I could've fallen asleep right there. I put a hand on his chest, over his heart. His pulse was so strong, I could feel it in my palm… I used one fingernail to trace his well-defined muscles. "You're beautiful, Smurfette." Hefty whispered in my ear, "You're the most beautiful smurf in the world."

I smiled and nuzzled his chin with my forehead. "Don't tell Vanity you said that." I said, only half kidding. "He'd smurf a fit."

Hefty snickered. "He would, huh?" he stated.

He turned to me more, and moved a few locks of my golden hair out of my face. He smiled, looking me deep in the eyes. Something inside of me told me to kiss him… I don't know what… but _something_ did… Without another word, I slowly closed my eyes and pressed my lips against his. He adjusted himself so that he faced me fully, still in liplock. I was feeling a little squished where I was, so I moved so I laid on top of him instead. As we kissed still, I felt his hands start to wander down my back, towards my tail… and I put the brakes on _that._ Using one hand, I brought his back up to my waist. He, however didn't seem discouraged in the least, and continued moving his hands down. I caught his hands again, and brought them back up to my waist. I broke the kiss and narrowed my eyes. "_Hefty_…" I whispered, warningly.

"I don't get it," He replied, "We've already _GONE_ farther than that… What, you don't like me anymore?"

"No, Hefty, it's not that." I told him.

"Then what _IS_ it?"

I looked down towards the corner, feeling my cheeks get hot. "I'm…. _I'm kind of embarrassed…_" I whispered a little.

"Embarrassed?" he replied, confusion in his voice.

"Yes," I replied, "I mean, we slept together, and we're in a relationship now together, but we've never even gone on a _real_ date? And _NO,_ the party doesn't count…"

"Oh." Hefty shrugged, "Well, if that's it, then yeah, we can go on a real date."

He sat up a little, so that he was more on the armrest of the couch. "Smurfette… would you go with me to the Harvest Festival today?" he asked in a very polite kind of tone.

I felt my cheeks flush. "I would like that very much, Hefty." I smiled a little bit.

He laid back down on the couch, and I just laid my head on his chest, over his heart. I suppose I must have nodded off like that, because I closed my eyes, and opened them to see that he was fast asleep. At first, I wanted to move, I was probably giving him an arm cramp or something. But after a minute, I just laid there next to him, just to watch his face. He looked so calm when he was asleep… Like nothing in the world could bother him… He was quiet when he slept too. He usually breathed pretty heavily when he was awake. But now, I could barely hear him inhale and exhale… A moment or two after I had woken up and started watching him sleep, a large black fly that had been buzzing around the room landed right over his lip, looking like a great big mole. That could move. His face twitched, but the fly didn't budge. Once he'd brought his hand to his face and shooed it away, the fly buzzed off, but at the same time, Hefty woke up. "Hey…" he said, drowsily.

"Hi…" I replied, giving him a little peck on his cheek. "Sorry I fell asleep there… I've been so tired today…"

"It's alright." Hefty moved a bit so that he was holding me, but sitting up. "Sorry I fell asleep too… how long have you been awake?"

"Just a couple minutes." I told him, tracing his airbrushed heart tattoo with my finger. "You're cute when you sleep, by the way."

His cheeks flushed a light pinkish. "I don't know how cute drooling and snoring is," He replied sheepishly.

"Drooling?" I asked, tilting my head, "You weren't drooling. And you're actually really quiet when you sleep."

Hefty looked a bit surprised at that. Then he laughed and put a hand to his face. "_That smurfhole!_" he laughed.

I looked at him, confused. "Handy told me awhile back that I snore and drool and stuff in my sleep. And of course, I don't know one way or another, so I couldn't really deny it." he laughed again, "and now whenever we talk about strange sleep quirks I would talk about that! I'm gonna have to get Handy back for that one! Haha!"

I laughed a little bit. "You guys are really good friends, aren't you?" I asked.

He nodded. "Brothers in spirit since 'birth'." He said, "Papa said that if one of us was too far away from the other, we'd both smurf out and wouldn't stop crying until Papa smurfed us back together. The same thing with me and Dreamy."

"Wow…" I murmured, "I don't think I have that strong of a bond with _anyone_."

"It's a double-smurfed sword," Hefty admitted, "They drive you mad, but you can't leave them or they can't leave you or else you still go mad… with the wrong smurfs it can be a toxic thing."

I nodded. It sounds like it would be. Hefty looked over to the clock in the corner. "It's nearly seven… we should go to the festival."

I nodded. "Okay" I replied.

We both got up, and I quickly fixed my hair. He offered me his arm, the way an escort would. "Shall we?" he asked, one hand on the doorknob.

I looped my arm with his, and we quickly walked out the door, towards the festival.

We moved quick enough that we wouldn't be spotted by anysmurf, and as soon as we started seeing more than a few smurfs here and there, I unlooped my arm from his. He pouted just a little. "When _AM_ I going to be able to brag about you bein' my smurffriend, anyways?" he nudged me a little, once I'd dropped arms.

"Someday, Hefty," I replied, "I don't know when right now… I don't want to hurt anysmurf's feelings."

Hefty crossed his arms. "Well, maybe if they were chicken-smurf enough that they couldn't come out and tell you, or ask you out like I did, maybe finding out that you're in a relationship should be a wake-up call that they need to get a little guts already." He huffed.

I admit, I was a bit surprised at his comment. _AND_ a bit offended. "_Hefty_!" I couldn't hold back, "That's not very smurfy! It takes a lot of courage to admit how they feel! You can't just come right out and tell someone, like that."

Hefty shrugged. "I guess you're right… but still…" Hefty put a reassuring hand on my shoulder. "If they waited this long and still not said anything, or acted on what they've said, it's their own loss."

I might've replied to that, but we'd reached the festival by the time I had a good reply. The whole village square was decorated with stringing lanterns and streamers of reds and browns. Handy had a couple of rides set up here and there, and some of the smurfs set up little stands and kiosks that suited their profession or hobby. From somewhere in the sea of stands, I could already smell fresh funnel cake and cinnamon-covered churros. "Mmm!" Hefty voiced my thoughts, licking his lips and patting his stomach. "You smell that? I just realized we haven't eaten yet, I don't know about you, but I'm hungry!"

"Mmm, it smells so smurfy!" I agreed.

"Let's go find Greedy's food court and get some dinner, then we'll walk around." Hefty suggested.

"Okay" I agreed.

He took me by the hand and led the way through the crowd that had gathered. "So we don't get separated." He winked at me.

I heard myself giggle slightly, and a light blush come to my cheeks. His hand felt so nice and warm, strong too. Somehow holding it made me feel stronger, even if it was just a little bit. Hefty led me through the crowd, where Greedy had set up an array of foods in a food court. "What wouldja like, looks like Greedy's smurfed out all the stops!" Hefty observed.

"Mmm…" I studied the small shacks with foods set up, "I'm almost in the mood for a sandwich… what about you?"

"That sounds good to me." Hefty agreed, and started walking towards the sandwich-building shack.

We made ourselves sandwiches, sat down at one of the picnic tables set up, and forced small talk. It was a bit odd, really. Not a half an hour ago, I was asleep and snuggled up to him, and now it was almost hard to talk to him without gushing about how cute he was earlier when he was sleeping, or how good he looked in this light… and did he look _good_! The lights from the surrounding carnival rides and such cast an orangish-red glow over him, hitting his muscles in all the right ways, and made him look even more strong and well-defined than before. His muscles tensed or moved whenever he did (although whether or not that was intentional remains to be smurfed) and every little move he made seemed to have some kind of a purpose. "Smurf a picture, it'll last longer." Hefty said in a joking manner.

H shook me from my thoughts, and I realized I'd been _staring _at him this _whole_ time. Now I defiantly didn't mind the dim light, so he wouldn't see my blush. "Sorry…" I apologized, "I didn't mean to stare."

"It's okay," Hefty said, taking a big bite from his sandwich. "I don't mind."

He intentionally flexed his stomach muscles, forming a near-perfect six pack. "Gives me an excuse to keep in shape if I have somebody lookin' at me." He nudged me slightly and winked.

I smiled a little, hoping he couldn't see my cheeks as red as they were. Those stomach muscles… they looked so _touchable_… A part of me wanted to run my fingers over the sharply defined muscles, but a larger, smarter part of me remembered where we were at the time. The smarter part won out.

We soon finished our sandwiches, and started off towards the games and such Jokey had set up. Although, upon finding that _ALL_ of the prizes were his Surprise boxes, that sort of put us off from playing many games. It _DIDN'T,_ however, discourage us from walking around more. "Why don't we smurf on one of the rides?" I suggested, looking over at the various rides Handy had set up earlier.

He tensed up slightly at the suggestion. "I…I'm not sure, Smurfette." He said, almost cautiously, "You know I'm kinda not smurfy with… you know… _heights_…"

I had nearly forgotten how scared he was of heights. But it wouldn't be as bad if he didn't look down, right? "It's okay, Hefty," I dismissed his concerns lightly. "I'll be right next to you the whole time, you don't have to be scared."

He still looked tense, so I slipped my hand into his and gave it a little squeeze. "How about just one, then? Something easy." I suggested softly.

He seemed to loosen up a little bit, but only that little bit. "Okay…" he murmured, "One would probably be okay."

I looked around a little, looking for a good ride Hefty and I could both ride. While looking around, I happened to catch a glance of Vanity, looking in his mirror, and talking, Farmer not far away. I waved over at them. "Hey!" I called over.

Vanity looked up from his mirror, and waved at us, walking right over and smiling. "Hel-LO, Smurfette! And hello, Hefty," Vanity ridged his eyebrow up at me, "You two are looking quite smurfy on your little date here."

I swatted him a little, laughing a little nervously. "Oh, Vanity… You're such a tease." I laughed, "and what about Farmer, here? Are you two on a date, too?"

I was joking, of course. Who ever heard of two smurfs dating, anyways? It's unheard of in the village. Still, Vanity seemed to laugh that same nervous laugh I did. "No, silly!" he said, looking in his mirror again, "good friends are allowed to go to a harvest festival together, aren't they?"

"'Specially when tha' good friend's been bustin' 'is smurf all week so we'd '_ave_ a harvest t' celebrate." Farmer's velvety Southern twang interjected into the conversation, then smiled widely, opening his arms for a friendly hug "Hai, shugah."

"Hi Farmer." I smiled at him, accepting the hug.

He gives the _BEST_ hugs. And he always smells like fresh hay. Farmer is such a sweetheart, but he's also one of the reasons I've been trying to keep my relationship with Hefty under smurfs. Not long ago, I found out that he had been a "secret admirer" of mine. And a particularly sweet one at that. And it wasn't until later that I realized that I'd rejected him to his face. He and I are still friends, but even though we've let bygones be bygones, I'm scared that I'll hurt him again telling about Hefty. "So where are you guys smurfing off to, anyways?" I asked Vanity when I broke the hug with Farmer.

"I suggested we go ride the Ferris Wheel," Vanity replied, gesturing towards the large metal contraption with the handle of his mirror, "most of the rides Handy sets up every year make me nauseous." He looked in his mirror and put a hand to his cheek, "Even though, smurf KNOWS I still look smurfy as ever in green."

"That sounds like a good idea," I looked over to Hefty, "We were just looking for something we could do, since Hefty's, you know…"

"Scared of heights." Hefty admitted, a nervous chuckle in the back of his throat.

"Ah, yes… well Ferris Wheels are not nearly as bad as some of these wooden deathtraps Handy insists on setting up every year," Vanity chuckled a little.

While we were making conversation, I hardly noticed the smurf coming up behind Vanity with the large water balloon. And by the time I did notice him, it was too late to do anything about it. The balloon exploded all over Vanity's bare back, making him utter a surprised gasp. The smurf that had initiated the prank laughed cynically, "_OOPS_! Sorry, Lady-smurf" he said, "I was aiming for the target over there."

Vanity just stood in slight shock for a moment or two, shaking his hands to rid them of water. "Why don' you pick on some'un yer own _species_, Tracker?" Farmer snarled, sounding uncharacteristically mad. "Ya better scram 'fore Ah _MAKE_ ya!"

Tracker snorted indignantly, the red feather in his hat flicking out to the side slightly as he turned his head and started to leave. "Like you'd smurf the guts," he scoffed, "Like _ANY_'a you'd smurf the guts.

Vanity just ducked his head and clenched his fists. I _wanted_ to prove Tracker wrong. I _WANTED_ to stand up for my friend right there and then. Fortunately, I didn't have to. Without much warning at all, Hefty walked right up to Tracker and backed him into the wall of one of the surrounding mushrooms. "You'd better smurf you're sorry, Tracker." He growled, pinning the surprised smurf to the wall with his arm. "I _don't _like when somesmurf smurfs fun at my friends."

I was quite surprised at Hefty's gallant action. I'd never seen him defend Vanity like that when Tracker bothered him before. Then again, I've only seen Tracker's bullying when I was directly around Vanity. I wasn't sure what went on when I wasn't around, and oftentimes Vanity wouldn't tell me. "Alright… I'm sorry." Tracker grumbled in reply, "_I'm sorry you're such a worthless Lady-smurf, Vanity_."

Hefty pressed Tracker further back against the wall and reared his other fist to lay it right in Tracker's miserable face. He likely would have, too, if Vanity hadn't stopped him when he did. "Hefty, don't…" Vanity half-mumbled quietly, taking Hefty's arm so he couldn't give Tracker the pummeling he probably deserved. "It's not worth it… just let it go…"

Hefty held Tracker against the wall for another thirty seconds or so before he let him go. "Touch him again, I'll smurf your teeth right out." He growled warningly. "Now make like an egg and _smurf it_!"

Tracker scrambled away and disappeared into the crowd. I turned back to Vanity. "Are you alright, Vanity?" I asked.

Vanity nodded slightly, looking at the ground. "Y-yes…I-I'm fine, Smurfette." He murmured, "Thank you for smurfing up for me, Hefty. It really means a lot."

Hefty simply nodded in reply. "I'm going to go back to my house and change," Vanity said softly, ducking his head and shuffling his feet.

"Ah'll walk ya back, Van'ty." Farmer told him softly, putting a comforting hand on his back. "Jus' in case tha' smurf'ole has anyhin' else smurfed out for ya."

Vanity silently shuffled his feet towards his house, Farmer speaking to him in quiet tones. _I wish Vanity didn't have to endure that kind of abuse from that darn Tracker… He's such a nice smurf _(when he wants to be)._ He really deserves better than that._ Hefty seemed to sense my distress, because he put a hand on my shoulder. I looked up at him and smiled a little. _He's so brave,_ I reminded myself in my mind, _He's so sweet for sticking up for Vanity like that…_ "You still want to ride that ride?" Hefty asked, voice significantly sweeter and gentler than it had been just a few moments ago.

Unable to find the words to speak, I just nodded. He led me by the hand to the line that led up to the Ferris Wheel. I could tell he was a bit nervous, so I tried to make small talk to keep his mind off the impending height. It didn't quite work… he was still nervous as smurf. Although, at least he wasn't alone. Just in front of us, Scaredy and Panicky had both worked up the courage to try and ride the ride. Poor Scaredy shook like an autumn leaf, looking fragile enough to break upon being touched. But once his Ferris wheel chair came around, he swallowed hard, and bravely sat down. "I w-w-_won't_ look down!" he squeaked, mainly to himself, "I w-w-w-_won't _look down!"

After he secured the nervous two into the seat by a simple pull-bar, Handy moved the wheel so it was one more forward, and opened up the seat. "Hey, Hefty, Smurfette." He said cordially, "Finally smurf up the courage to get on the courage to smurf out the Ferris Wheel, huh? Don't be scared in front'a your girl, Hef!" he nudged him jokingly.

"Smurf up, Handy!" Hefty snapped nervously, as we sat down, "I'm not scared!"

"Okay, if you smurf so." Handy shrugged his shoulders, pushing the pull-bar into the latch and locking it in. "Just don't rock around in that one too much, there's a loose bolt I haven't gotten to fix yet."

Hefty went pale right there. "There's a _WHAT_?!"

"See ya!" Handy moved the wheel so we were higher up.

"_WAIT A SMURFBERRY- PICKIN' MINUTE! HANDY, YOU LET ME DOWN RIGHT NOW!_" Hefty looked panicked.

"Hefty, calm down…" I took his hand and looked him in the eyes. "He was kidding, Hefty. Handy wouldn't put us on a cart if he didn't know it was safe. You're his best friend, _he wouldn't do that_."

Hefty started to calm down slightly, and take a few deep breaths. "Okay?" I asked.

"Okay…" he nodded, putting an arm around me.

He kept his eyes upward most of the time. If he looked down at the village or at the smurfs that were intentionally rocking their carts, Hefty would look positively sick to his stomach. I felt bad for him now, I didn't realize he was _THIS_ scared of heights. I tried making conversation to make him less nervous. "That was really brave of you, smurfing up to Tracker earlier." I said with a gentle smile.

"Thanks." Hefty said, swallowing hard, "I-I don't like it when someone gets picked on like that. I only even smurf with Brainy when he really deserves it. What Tracker does is just being a coward."

"I'll say," I agreed, "Calling Vanity a 'Lady smurf'…. Hmph!" I snorted indignantly a little bit. "Just because Vanity cares about what he looks like doesn't make him a lady smurf!"

"Yeah." Hefty nodded. "I hate it when-!"

Without any warning whatsoever, The ride stopped and the seats rocked slightly. "W-why are we stopping?" Hefty gripped the bar tightly.

"_**H-HELLLP**_**!**" I heard a voice shout below me. "_**SOMEBODY, PLEASE! HELLLLLP!**_"

I looked down, seeing Scaredy hanging from the seat, the bar having popped out, clinging for dear life. I couldn't help it. I screamed. "_**H-HEFTY, L-LOOK! "**_I grabbed his arm in a panic. "_**SCAREDY'S ABOUT TO FALL!**_"

Almost immediately, he loosed his grip. "Where?! Where is he?!" he asked.

"He's in the cart under us!" I replied.

Without much warning at all, Hefty grabbed the bar that held the seat and stood up in the seat. Before I could so much as utter a scream, I watched as he climbed down the bars, and reached the seat Scaredy was so precariously hanging from. "H-Hefty, h-hurry!" Scaredy shrieked, "_**I-I'm slipping**_!"

He desperately tried to claw back up in the chair, his hands looking slick from oil and sweat. In a single heart-stopping moment, Scaredy's hands actually disappeared from the metal bar they were so desperately clinging to. But another half a moment later, and Hefty was pulling a small, scared, shaking smurf up onto the chair, much to a loud cheer of the others below. Handy moved the wheel back so that the three smurfs in the busted seat could get out, then moved it again and let me out. As soon as the bar was unlocked and I could get down from the seat, I ran right to Hefty and threw my arms around him. "Y-you're a _HERO_, Hefty!" I said plainly, hugging him tightly, "That was so brave of you to do that… risking your life to save Scaredy…" I broke the hug for just a moment, and planted a big kiss on his cheek.

Before Hefty could reply, the crowd started to move out of the way. "Well done, Hefty!" an older, more distinguished-sounding voice came from where the crowd had dispersed from. "You really _ARE_ a hero, my little smurf."

I looked up and saw our red-clad leader, smiling proudly, hugging and comforting the still shaken Scaredy. "Thank you, Papa smurf," Hefty smiled in return. "But thank Smurfette, really. If she hadn't convinced me to smurf on the ride with her, Poor Scaredy might've gone splat."

"I _HATE _splat!" the gruff voice of Grouchy interjected from somewhere in the back of the large crowd.

"We _ALL_ hate splat, Grouchy." Papa agreed, "and you prevented it, Hefty. and faced your fear of height as well."

"Th-th-th-thank you, H-H-H-Hefty!" Scaredy stammered, half hobbling over to Hefty and giving him a tight hug. "Y-you smurfed my l-l-l-life!"

"It's alright, Scaredy." Hefty patted the scared smurf on the back. "Anysmurf else would'a smurfed the same."

"Three cheers for Hefty!" Handy called, still letting others off the ride.

As the crowd cheered for him, I simply gazed at him. He was scared. _Terrified,_ even. But somehow, he'd managed to pull off something as incredible as that.

That's _my_ smurffriend… That's _MY_ Hefty.


End file.
